Secretly Together
by Square-Enix Fan
Summary: Claire decides to leave the fast, city life for a quiet, farm life. Unfortunately, a tragedy strikes and causes her to transfer yet again. Amidst her melancholy, she meets a man who changes her world and opens her heart to love again. The problem? He's the 'Prince of the Stars', the Phantom Skye. Chapter 8 is now up!
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer: I do not own the characters mentioned here, except maybe for a few. I don't even own some of the ones I took the liberty of naming, like the dog, as it is really part of the 'characters' in Harvest Moon. This probably isn't really necessary though.**

* * *

_Click._

The door unlocked. Claire twisted her key and pulled it out off the keyhole. She turned the doorknob and entered her room. She had a very spacious studio-type apartment unit. She didn't buy too many trinkets to adorn her unit with. She only had a few picture frames hanging here and there. She had only what she thought were necessary: a bed, a refrigerator, a stove, a small TV, a table, a chair and other small accessories.

The room was dark. It was already half past 7 in the evening. Automatically, Claire reached out for the light switch a few inches away from the door frame. The fluorescent light bulb at the center of her room turned on. Immediately, the room brightened, making the faded, pink wallpaper appear new again, as though it wasn't supposed to be pink. She walked to the small counter perpendicular to the door. It had three hooks protruding from its side. She hanged the small backpack she was carrying on the first hook. She suddenly remembered that she was still holding onto her keys. She had two keys. One was for her apartment unit, and the other was for her personal locker in the company she was working in.

Claire was currently working as grocery store clerk. It had just been a month from when she had graduated from one of the state universities in her area. It was never in her plan to live her dream job right away. She wanted the typical job experience first. She was from a relatively wealthy family. She didn't need to worry about her finances.

The everyday hustle and bustle of life was beginning to wear her out. She had been a grocery store clerk for over 4 months already and she thought it was starting to get boring. She was eager to finally be able to work in the field that interested her most. From when she was still a small child, she always enjoyed being around crops. Her grandmother loved planting all sorts of things: fruits, vegetables, and flowers. Herbs and spices weren't rare but they only appeared in the garden ten years before her grandmother was diagnosed with Alzheimer's disease. Claire also loved animals. It was something her grandfather had instilled in her. She especially enjoyed the company of dogs because she believed they were friendlier than cats.

Claire studied agriculture. After her grandmother died, she decided that she was going to carry on what her grandmother loved second: working with crops. She was who her grandmother loved most. Remembering her grandmother's final moments always brought her to tears. Her grandmother had been bedridden for at least a month with no knowledge of who the people around her were. Not her husband, not her son, not her daughters, but she remembered her granddaughter. She remembered her beloved granddaughter—the only child of her dead, eldest son.

Claire was raised by her paternal grandparents. Her maternal grandparents disassociated themselves from her mother, who did not marry the man they arranged her to. Her parents were victims of drunk driving. They were driving home when a car suddenly collided with them. Claire was staying at her aunt's place that night and received the news early the next morning. It was the first thing she heard.

Claire had also worked as a veterinarian's assistant but had to leave when the veterinarian was assigned to another city. Other than she earned money, got a bit of job experience and availed of free services, she also learned a lot about animals from him.

Claire hung her keys on a hook at the back of her door. She sighed and walked sluggishly to the fridge. She grabbed a small plate of pizza and heated it in her microwave. She grabbed the newspaper lying on the counter and read it. She skimmed through the news and opinions and looked directly at the classified ads. Then, she saw it, an advertisement for a farm lot somewhere north. She quickly called the number listed and asked her questions with excitement. All the answers, she believed, were just what she wanted to hear. But, she decided to hold back from buying it first. If someone buys it ahead of her within the next two days, it was not meant for her. She needed a _sign_ that this was it. This is where she'll be living for the rest of her life.

The microwave suddenly made a noise, startling Claire. She laid the newspaper back onto the counter and grabbed her dinner. She hastily ate it, then, took a quick bath. She yawned as she shut off the lights and walked to her bed. She laid herself quickly on the bed and shut her eyes. She fantasized about owning the farm. She fantasized of watering and harvesting crops, of taking care of cattle, of tilling soil and of meeting the man she would marry. She giggled at all the thoughts that bombarded her mind. She was getting excited.

As quickly as new fantasies entered her head, Claire fell asleep. _Thud. Baldy. The Harvest Goddess. Budum._ Claire opened her eyes. Her room was dark and empty. She wondered what it was she _thought_ she heard. All the monsters, ghosts and murderers that appeared in the different horror movies she watched surfaced in her mind. She remembered all the tales her uncle told her to scare her during Halloween and when she was being particularly stubborn. She was already in her 20's but hearing something in the middle of the night was something that let every scary thing enter your head.

Claire wanted to turn on the lights but was too busy trying to drown away all the scary thoughts. She shut her eyes tight and pulled her blanket over her head. _'There's nothing in your room, Claire. You're not a kid anymore. Monsters don't exist. There isn't a boogeyman. Calm down.'_ Claire wasn't someone who would easily get frightened, but she was one hundred percent sure that something spoke inside her room. It wasn't beside her, but it was in her room a few minutes ago. At some point, Claire was able to fall back asleep. She didn't necessarily leave early for work. Her shift started at 10am.

At exactly 7:30 in the morning, Claire found herself on the verge of waking up. Briefly, Claire had opened her eyes and she saw the time. She decided she could still sleep for a minute or two. Then, she realized that she was actually running late. She quickly sat up and scrambled to her feet, nearly tripping on her blanket. She ran into her bathroom and took a quick bath. She wiped herself dry and applied whatever creams, lotions and whatnots she needed to put which were part of her morning routine. She ran out of her bathroom and darted for the wardrobe standing just a few meters away. She grabbed her underwear and one of the uniforms hanging inside and put them with as much speed she could produce. She wore her shoes and made a mad dash for her bag and keys. She locked her door and ran down the stairway not too far from her unit. She rushed down the steps as fast as she could and ran through the streets, bumping nearly into a few others.

* * *

"I resigned." Claire played with the telephone cord as she spoke. The voice on the other end asked her why. "I've found a good enough land where I could live and work with crops and livestock. I'd be able to make use of everything I learned from you, from grandmother and from the university." Her grandfather asked her if this was the life she really wanted. She would be away from the city, and, technically, away from her family, friends and her boyfriend.

Claire had a lot of friends in the city. A lot of them were college friends, a few were from the jobs she had and a few more were from around her neighborhood. When she transferred there, she had to part from her grandfather. Her grandfather moved to another area and decided to ask one of his daughters, who ended up as a widowed mother of three, to live with him instead when her husband died. Claire was also very attached to her family. She often played with her younger cousins as she was the oldest from them. Her parents married young and the gap between her father and his siblings was at least 5 years. Claire also had a boyfriend. He was the son of a business man who was a family friend. She honestly loved her boyfriend, but she had caught him locking lips with another woman recently. She hadn't told her grandfather about breaking up with him yet. She was never sure how she was going to tell him.

"I broke up with him already. We have quite a lot of differences." Claire sighed as her grandfather argued with her about being his 'perfect match'. "I promise I'll call everyday." Claire started twirling her hair as her grandfather asked her where she this land was located. "It's in Mineral Town. It's really not quite far from there." Her grandfather asked her why she couldn't just stay with him instead and why she preferred to call rather than visit him everyday. He was familiar with Mineral Town. "You're living with Aunt Betty right now and I wouldn't be able to tend to my crops and livestock if I kept leaving. Before you argue with me, I don't think Aunt Betty would be too happy with _her kids_ running around with _farm animals_."

"I'm already going to start packing my things. I called the realtor and told him my plans of moving. I've also spoken to my landlord and pretty much everyone else. I told you last because I wouldn't want you to worry about me until I was a hundred percent sure. My things and I are going to get picked up tomorrow. What's that? Have I checked the land? Yes, I have. I would be very busy with it." Claire looked at the clock. It was already past 9. "I have to go now, grandfather. I love you. Stay safe. Good night." She ended the call and looked at the stuff she wasn't finished packing yet. She left early from work after her boss had told her to take the rest of the day as a paid time off. It was his parting gift to her. She quickly left and headed to Mineral Town to check the land. Mineral Town was at least two hours away. Her boss had allowed her to leave at lunch time, so she didn't have too much trouble with time.

When she got to Mineral Town, she spoke with the realtor, who guided her to the land. The town mayor was waiting by the entrance to the farm. Claire looked at the land. It was in horrible condition. There were weeds everywhere, the fences were in terrible condition, tree stubs were all around the field and the grasses were very tall. She looked at the realtor. Her eyebrows were furrowed and it was obvious she was going to shout at the man. "Don't blame me!" He said. "You were talking to the mayor!" Claire glared at the mayor. "You told me the land was _lush._ Is this what farming-ready _looks_ like?" She thought up of horrible ways to torture this man. She saw a rake nearby. She thought of stabbing him with it, watching the blood drip from the rusted tool. She noticed other tools and thought up of other brutal ways to kill him with it. She was cheated. She had high hopes for this place. She quit her job for nothing.

The mayor grabbed his handkerchief. He was getting nervous. He wiped away the sweat that was building up on his forehead. He apologized to Claire. "I had to make it sound appealing. No one would buy it if they knew it looked like this. I was hoping someone like you would appear. There will always be those people who make rash decisions on things they don't think through." He saw her clench her fists. "I wasn't trying to offend you. I promise! Let me make you a deal. I will sell this to you for half the price, just don't beat me up."

Claire sighed. There was nothing else she could do. She had to agree. "Fine, I'll buy it." She was going to make this land into a beautiful farm. Suddenly, a whimper echoed throughout the field.

"Oh," the mayor began. "Before I forget, there's a puppy in the shed. I don't like dogs so I'll have to ask you to get him yourself. Another gift, I suppose."

Claire walked towards the shed. She opened the door and a puppy dashed out and jumped on her. It wagged its tail excitedly and barked. Claire picked it up and looked at it. "Oh! You're a boy!" She smelled the puppy. "You smell relatively good. Wait, are you hungry?" The puppy's stomach grumbled and Claire giggled. Claire grabbed half a sandwich that was stored in her backpack. At that moment, she was happy she hadn't finished the sandwich earlier. She sat on the soil and put the puppy on her lap. She pinched a small piece from the sandwich and gave it to the puppy. Seeing the puppy made her forget about her anger. After feeding the puppy, she picked him up and approached the realtor. "I want to see the house."

The realtor led her into the small house near one of the corners of the farm. He opened the door for her and switched the light on. The small house was the size of her apartment unit. She went to the bathroom. It looked decent. She'd just clean it up some more and disinfect it when she moves in. This house was going to do. "Please arrange something for me and my stuff. I'll move in tomorrow." She handed him the down-payment. She set the puppy on the field and waited for him to do its business. He peed and pooped, then, ran back to her. She picked him up and got ready to return to her apartment.

* * *

**This is actually the first fanfic I've written in the past year, and hopefully, I'll be able to take this seriously, unlike the last fanfic I've written (a crossover fic). I've written other fics but they weren't really fanfics, more of original fics. So, I hope I'm actually back for good. Wish me luck! Oh, and thanks for reading! :)**

**Other than that, I really took liberties creating background characters (and more will come) and naming others (you've only met the Mineral Town dog, wait until you meet the others). If you have any comments, suggestions, recommendations, or anything really, feel free to tell me.**

**Oh, and to those familiar with my _other_ HM fanfic, I'm not continuing that anymore. Whatever was going to happen with that, is going here. I'm not removing it because it's still slightly different but...you probably get the deal. My main guy there was Cliff and well, it's Skye, now.  
**


	2. Chapter 2

Claire looked at her now empty, former apartment unit. Its size was deceiving. At first, you would think it was a very spacious wonder, then, when you move your furniture in, reality would dawn on you. She had been living here for over 2 years. The walls and floors had small markings. She exited the unit and locked the door. She held her apartment key and looked at it. She had already returned her locker key to her boss and now, she had to return this.

With her key between her fingers and the puppy between her hands, she slowly walked down the stairs. She talked to the security guard near the entrance and gave him her key. She bade him farewell. This guy had been one of her friends. She knew she was going to miss the 'good morning', 'goodbye' and 'welcome back' salutes he gave her. She knew she was going to be all alone again.

She stepped out of the apartment complex and entered the small truck parked in front. This was it. She was moving out of the city for good. Her heart started beating fast. The puppy looked at her, panting heavily. The weather was sunny. It was even a little bit hot that day. The puppy's saliva started dripping from his mouth. Claire took the worn-out face towel from her backpack and wiped the puppy's saliva away. "I haven't given a name yet, have I?"

The puppy barked. "I think I'll call you...", she looked through the windshield and saw the sky. "...Ciel." She lifted the puppy directly across her face. "From now on, you'll be Ciel." The puppy barked louder. "You like it, don't you?" She looked at the puppy and smiled. '_From now on, you're my beloved Ciel_'

* * *

It took Claire over two hours to get to Mineral Town. The traffic was slightly heavy. When she arrived, she had the furniture placed in the exact same order as they were back in the apartment. After everything was placed perfectly, she gave the men their payment and continued fixing the place. She allowed the puppy to move freely around the house as she cleaned the bathroom. Claire hated the thought of dirty bathrooms and kitchens.

She sprayed disinfectants all over the walls, floor, toilet and bath. Age had made it grimy. It was already 11 in the morning. She had arrived a little over two hours earlier. All the grime was difficult to clean. She wondered how many years had actually passed since somebody inhabited this place. The next thing she targeted was the kitchen. The kitchen was easier to clean. Most of the stuff there were hers anyway.

After cleaning the kitchen, she prepared her lunch, along with little Ciel's lunch. She made curry rice for herself and soaked his puppy food in water. She ate her lunch and saved the rest for dinner. She gave Ciel his lunch and continued cleaning her new house. When she finished, she stepped out of the house and allowed the puppy to wander around. She looked at everything she was going to work with. _'At least, the soil here is good.'_

She looked at the sky. The clouds were like white strands against a light blue background. Claire loved cirrus clouds. They were the best for doing field work. She whistled to the puppy. Ciel came running to her. She ushered him into the the shed and went in afterward. She looked at the tools inside. They were slightly rusted but they seemed sturdy enough. She lifted the sickle. It was a bit too heavy but she decided she could get herself to get used to it. She looked at all the other stuff and decided they, too, were good enough.

She exited the shed and entered the barn. It was big. She could probably fit in enough cows and sheep. _'This is going to need quite a bit of cleaning.'_ She exited the barn and headed for the chicken coop. She was satisfied with it. She just needed to clean it as well. She exited and walked to the small pond. It had a lot of leaves on it but it was still relatively clean. There weren't even any wrigglers in it. She walked over to the tree. The sound of bees flying around was easily distinguishable.

She walked over to the middle of the field and stroked one of the blades of grass that brushed against her arm. She was going to start working on the fields tomorrow. Today, she was going to purchase three chickens, a cow, a sheep and a few seeds. She looked at the entrance to her farm. There was a man approaching with the mayor. She walked over to them.

"Good afternoon, Claire!" The mayor lifted his arm to shake hands with her. "This is Zack." Claire nodded to him. "He'll be arriving here every 5pm to pick up whatever you want to have shipped. You see that wooden crate over there?" He pointed to the oddly shaped wooden structure across her house. "Whatever you want shipped or sold should be placed there. There's one in the barn and another in the coop. If you have any other questions related to shipping, just ask him."

Claire looked at Zack and smiled. "I'm Claire. It's a pleasure to meet you." She gestured to shake hands with him and he accepted. "It's a pleasure to meet you, too," he said, "Claire." "Do you have any questions?" Claire nodded at his question. "I would like to know" she started. "How do I tell you that I don't have any shipments?" Zack considered her question. "You could go to my place by the dock. I can show you where it is, anytime you want. Or, you could just tell me whenever you see me around town. If I'm already here, that wouldn't be a problem. Just tell me."

"Thank you, Zack!" Claire responded. "If you aren't busy today, could you show me where it is that you live, so I could just tell you?"

Zack nodded to Claire's question. "Sure, I'll even show you around town."

* * *

Claire carried Ciel. "I'll just put my pet inside." She went inside her house and carefully set him down. "I'll be leaving you here for a while. I'll just acquaint my self with the townspeople first." She kissed him on the forehead and exited her house. She locked it up and approached Zack and exited the farm with him.

They walked quite a bit and turned at the first corner. There was a house on the lelft side. "That," Zack pointed, "is Saibara's tool shop. You can buy some tools there or have what you have upgraded. He lives with his grandson, Gray. That kid, oh wait, he's probably just as old as you. Well, that kid is a little..." he struggled with thinking up of the right adjective to give. "He's a little bit uptight."

They walked further down the road. There was an empty lot. It was big and had a sign on it. Claire didn't have time to read it. "This one", Zack pointed to the lot just across the empty one, "belongs to Lillia. She has two kids, Rick and Popuri. They sell chickens and some stuff related to chickens. Rick is also uptight. Maybe even more true to the word than Gray. Popuri is...perky."

They reached another corner. "That leads to the mountains and the Goddess spring." He pointed at the path. "Let's make that the last stop. It will lead back to your farm." Claire nodded and continued following Zack. They skipped the path and headed straight. They passed by another house. "That's Barley's ranch. He sells cows, sheep and horses. He lives with his granddaughter, May. She's only about 5. Cute little kid, I must say."

They continued walking until they reached a wide, open area. "This is Rose square. Most festivals and events are held here." Zack stopped for a while. "Would you like to go to the beach first or go through the other houses first?" Claire looked at Zack. She considered her options. She opened her mouth, but stopped herself from speaking. She tilted her head to the side. "You decide. Whichever is more convenient to you." Zack nodded his head. "Let's go to the beach first. It's closer."

They headed for the beach. "Whatever event isn't held in the square is held here." Zack pointed to the white shack. "That's Kai's shack. He's only here during the summer though, so you wouldn't be able to meet him yet. That one, on the other hand," he pointed to the house beside it, "is my house. I have a Chinese guy staying with me there. He's Won. He likes to sell stuff but his stuff are a bit expensive. They're also quite rare. That's the dock right there."

They walked back to the square. They passed through the other path at the north. "I won't lead you through this path anymore. That big house-like thing there is the inn. Doug runs it. He has a daughter named Ann. They currently have 2 tenants, Gray and Cliff. Cliff is new here, too, but he's usually in the church. When Kai is here, he stays there. Usually, Van, a traveling merchant, stays there whenever he's in town. The Gourmet, the outside judge of the cooking festivals, stays there whenever he's here. The one beside it is Aja's Winery. Duke and his wife, Manna, live there. Aja is their daughter but she left for the city a while back.

They continued north. They stopped in front of the church. "Our pastor is named Carter. He's a very kind fellow. You should go here, if you're into this faith." Claire nodded. She noticed a path beside the church and asked what it was. "Rumor has it that the mythological harvest sprites live there." Zack nodded. "No one has really seen the sprites."

They turned west and started walking. "This is the local clinic. The local doctor is named Trent. He's very easy to get along with. The nurse is named Ellie and she's just wonderful." They continued walking. "This one is the supermarket. It's run by Jeff and his family. He's a nervous wreck. He has a wife named Sasha and she's always in the square with Manna and Anna. He has a daughter named Karen. She sometimes helps out there. This one is the mayor's house. Mayor Thomas lives with his son Harris, our constable. This one beside it is Ellen's house. She's Elli's grandmother. She's a very kind old lady. If you see a little boy around here, that's Stu, Elli's brother. He's very playful. Lastly, this one is the local library. Basil and his family run it. Anna is Basil's wife. His daughter, Mary, is the local librarian. Basil is usually in the mountains."

They turned at the corner and walked straight down back to Claire's farm. Before I leave, I'll just quickly show you through the mountains. They continued walking south. They passed by a forest-like area and Claire saw a house. Zack noticed the question forming on her face. "That's Gotz's place. He's a carpenter." They continued walking straight. This path up here leads to the Goddess spring and mine. They continued walking and stopped in front of a lake. This is the Kappa lake. They say that if you throw a cucumber in it, the Kappa will come out. That's just a myth though." Zack pointed forward. "That path there leads to the mountains. That's where we can view the moon during New Year's. It's the best site."

They walked back to Claire's farm. "That's all for today. You can always visit everyone if you really want to meet them. I have to go now. Oh, and in case you were wondering why no one was out and about, they're all just probably resting." Claire nodded and thanked Zack. He waved at her and she waved back. He left and Claire headed to her house. '_I guess I'll clean the coop and the barn tomorrow, and get the chickens, cow and sheep tomorrow.'_

It was already past 5:30 and it was getting darker. She went inside her house and petted Ciel. "I'm back!" She carried her puppy and started playing with him. "I'll introduce you to the people when I'm more familiar with them." She smiled at him. '_I'd like to get to know all of them some more._'


	3. Chapter 3

Claire woke up with a start. Ciel was sleeping, curled beside her. She rubbed her face with her hands. Yawning, she got up from her bed and headed to her kitchen. She prepared toasted bread and milk. She spread butter all over her toasted bread and waited for it to melt. After every few bites, she drank a bit of milk. Claire enjoyed drinking milk in both the morning and the evening, although, due to her past busy schedule, she found preparing the type of meals she wanted difficult.

Ciel jumped at her as she was eating. Claire didn't mind him. She didn't want him to get spoiled and become hard-headed. Ciel started barking at her but Claire tried not to mind him. He finally gave up and sat down by her feet. Claire pinched a small piece from her bread and gave it to Ciel. Ciel started barking and jumping again, but Claire stopped minding him again. After she ate, she prepared Ciel's food, washed her plate, gave the puppy his food and made her bed.

Claire headed to her bathroom and took a bath, contemplating on what she planned on doing for the day. She thought of going through some of the houses to meet some of her neighbors and finally buying a few seeds and livestock. She was beginning to get excited at the thought of earning money from pure hard work. She didn't think that the jobs she had previously would be as difficult as this. She looked at her clock. It was already 7:45.

Claire stepped out of her house and surveyed her farm. It was probably a little bit too early to start visiting people. She got her sickle and cut through some of the tall grass growing in her main field. She could use this as feed for her livestock when the weather is bad or something similar. She had already cleared a square meter of grass when she noticed how high the sun already was in the sky. She entered her house again and washed her hands.

_Knock. Knock._

Claire approached her door as she heard the noise. She wondered if the mayor or Zack wanted to talk to her. She opened her door and saw a Chinese man standing in front of her. His hand was still raised, obviously ready to knock again. He lowered his hand but kept it level with his waist. "Good morning. I am Won."

Ciel ran beside Claire and started barking. Claire, on the other hand, took Won's hand and shook with him. "I'm Claire. Nice to meet you." Won nodded and lowered his hands, surprising Claire at the sudden drop of her hand. "I sell a lot of things. My shop is in the beach, in Zack's house, to be exact. Please visit when you have the time." Claire nodded and Won left immediately. '_He's a bit weird'_, she thought to herself.

Claire petted Ciel on the head. "I'll be going around town for a while, okay?" She approached her door and Ciel followed her. "No, darling, you're not coming with me today." She exited her door and heard a small whimper from inside. She shook her head. She shouldn't easily get swayed because of the whimpers of a puppy. She was going to meet some of the townspeople first.

Claire slowly walked to the entrance of her farm. She continued walking straight with her head bowed, then, she suddenly stopped. She saw a pair of feet not too far from the peripheral of her field of vision. She stared at the feet and slowly gazed upward. She saw a pair of brown eyes staring directly into hers. The man raised his hand and fixed his eyeglasses. He lowered the same hand and stretched it toward her. "Hi. I'm Rick. You must be the new owner of that farm." He pointed down the path. "The mayor mentioned you." Claire took his hand. "I'm Claire. It's a pleasure to meet you." She glanced sideways, trying to locate where exactly he lived. "You're from the poultry farm, am I right?"

Rick nodded. "Zack told me," Claire continued. Rick nodded again. "If you ever want to buy chickens," he began. "Just go over to my place. We're open everyday, except Sundays, from 11 in the morning until 4 in the afternoon." Claire nodded and let go of Rick's hand. Rick blushed and apologized. "Sorry about that. Uh...I have to go now." He turned left and started walking. He glanced back at Claire. "See you soon!"

Claire waved at him. She started walking in the same direction. She saw what Zack called 'Saibara's shop'. The sign by the door said 'Come in, we're open'. She entered the shop and heard a woman speaking. Claire walked forward, then suddenly stopped.

"Thank you very much for upgrading it. It's a whole lot easier to use. Tha-", the woman's voice was abruptly cut off by the 'ouch' of a man in the corner. The old man the lady was talking to started scolding the young man in the corner. This younger man just stayed quiet, trying not to be bothered by the words of his elder. "Hey, wait," the woman grabbed his hand and surveyed one of his fingers. "Do you have any bandages, Mister Saibara?" She looked at the old man while pressing the younger one's finger. Saibara got something from the drawer in his desk and handed it to her.

The woman asked Saibara to cut the gauze and she started wrapping it around the young man's finger. The young man thanked her. The woman bowed and quickly walked away. Her head was down when she passed by Claire, not noticing that she was even there, and exited the little shop. Claire looked at the woman and noticed she had glasses and her black hair was tied in a loose ponytail.

"You better thank Mary properly, Gray." Saibara was pointing at Gray who was staring intently at his wrapped finger. "I don't know how you plan on doing it, just make sure you do it." Gray dropped his hand suddenly and looked at the person standing by the doorway. "What are you looking at?" Saibara followed his gaze and spoke. He looked at Gray and yelled at him for being discourteous to a customer. He then looked at Claire and said, "good morning! You must be that woman the mayor was talking about. I'm Saibara," he gave Gray a quick glance and pointed at him. "And this," he rolled his eyes, "is my grandson, Gray. I'm sorry for the commotion you walked into. Welcome to my shop. What is your name?" He smiled at Claire and urged her forward. "Come close, don't worry. I don't bite. Although," he lowered his hand and reached out to her. "He might."

Claire approached the old man and took his hand. "I'm Claire. It's a pleasure to meet you." Saibara released her hand and cleared his throat. "We're open from 10 to 4 except on Thursdays, so, if you want anything fixed or upgraded just go to me," he looked at Gray again, "...or him." Saibara looked at Claire again. "Do you have any questions?"

Claire nodded. "Do you sell any tools?" She looked at the old man and then the young man and smiled. "In case I break any of my tools beyond repair. "Ah yes," the old man answered. "We sell some tools, too. And other stuff I doubt your farm still has, like wool scissors. Finn wasn't into taking care of sheep. On the other hand, I believe the milker is already too rusty for use. I'm not trying to force you to buy, I'm just saying." Claire giggled at the old man's words. "It's just business." She said.

Saibara laughed. "That's right! Look here, Gray, someone who understands marketing."

Claire looked at Gray and smiled. Gray looked away. "Hi..." Saibara nudged Gray in the rib and murmured something to him. "Why don't you stay a while. I'd like to know more about you." Claire looked at Saibara, surprised at his question. She grinned at him and answered his question. "Yes, thank you. I'd like to know more about you, too."

* * *

"Ah," Saibara took a sip from his teacup. "Your grandmother must be very proud of you." He leaned forward and gestured Claire to do the same. "If you ask me, I'm proud of Gray, too. I just don't want to say it to his face. Not yet, it's too early. He isn't taking this too seriously yet." Claire straightened her back and set the teacup on the table.

"I enjoyed speaking to you, Mister Sai-"

"Please," Saibara spoke. "Just Saibara."

Claire nodded, "Saibara". She stood from her seat and bowed to him. "I have to go now. Thank you very much."

"Gray," Saibara called out. "Walk Claire out," he looked at his grandson sternly, "and apologize". Gray nodded and walked towards Claire. "Let me take you outside." He stood still and waited for Claire to walk. As she approached the door, he spoke. "I'm sorry for being rude earlier. It's just that," he opened the door for her, "my grandfather has a way of setting my nerves off."

"It's probably not my business," Claire began, "but why would he set your nerves off?" Gray shrugged, closing the door behind him after they passed. "I feel like he doesn't appreciate me being around." Gray lifted his hat and slicked his hair back. "It's not like too many people would still want to be apprenticed by him. It's like he's always looking down on me." He set his hat back on his head. "I think I want to give up and return to the city instead."

Claire shook her head. "All you need to do is practice some more. He's probably like that because you're his grandson. He probably doesn't want to see you hurt," Claire looked away as she spoke, "...like earlier."

"You saw that?" Gray's eyes widened in shock. "Well, this is embarrassing." He rubbed the back of his head and looked away. Claire laughed at Gray. He looked at her, confused at her sudden outburst. "Practice more and train harder! You'll see, he'll be so proud of you." She placed her hand on his shoulder and grinned. Gray looked at Claire's eyes and suddenly spoke. "Thank you. I really appreciate it. I guess I'll talk to him and apologize." Claire nodded, and removed her hand from his shoulder. "You're welcome." She smiled at him again. "It was really nice meeting you. Bye!" She waved him goodbye and walked toward the poultry farm.

Claire approached the poultry farm and looked at the field in front of her. She walked toward the door and placed her hand on the door knob. Suddenly, the door opened and she saw a shocked Rick standing in front of her. He placed his hand on his chest and sighed. "You nearly gave me a heart attack." He let go of the door knob and gestured her to come in. "Were you planning on buying anything," He looked at the stairs as he heard light foot steps going down, "or just visiting?"

"Just visiting," Claire answered. "I haven't cleaned up my chicken coop yet, and I was planning on asking some questions."

A pink-haired, middle-aged lady walked toward the two. She looked at Rick first, and then at Claire. "The new girl", Rick mumbled. "Hi," she raised her hands to shake with Claire. "I'm Lillia. You are?" Claire took Lillia's hand, "I'm Claire." Lillia reached for Claire's hair. "Wait, you have something on your hair." She took it out and gave it to Rick. "Just a leaf, nothing to worry about." She smiled at Claire. "Nice to meet you, Claire," she walked toward her couch and sat down. She patted the seat next to hers. "Would you like to sit?"

Claire nodded. "Thank you." She sat down beside Lillia.

"I heard you wanted to ask questions, what is it that you would like to know?" Lillia looked at Rick and mouthed_,_ _tea_, and something else at him. Rick went up and a minute later, he went back down and headed into the kitchen. Lillia faced Claire again and waited for her to speak. Just as Claire was about to speak, loud steps echoed throughout the house, followed by a high-pitched sound. Claire and Lillia looked at the stairs, as a loud 'Popuri!' was heard from the kitchen.

As Popuri reached the last step, she straightened her skirt and walked toward Claire. "Hi! I'm Popuri. It's nice to meet you." She took both of Claire's hands. "What's your name?" Claire stood up, hands still in Popuri's grip. "I'm Claire."

"Popuri," Rick called out from the kitchen. "Could you please help me out with these?" Popuri smiled at Claire and let her go, then, she headed for the kitchen. Lillia looked at Claire and spoke. "Popuri is very hyper." She nodded to herself. "Ah," she saw her children approaching them with trays. "Let's continue our conversation after the tea and cake are served."

Rick set down a cup in the table in front of Liliia and one in front of Claire. He set down another two intended for him and his sister. He then proceeded to pour tea into the cups and set the teacup down in the center of the four cups. Afterward, Popuri placed the plates of cake beside each teacup and handed everyone their forks. "Bon appetit!"

* * *

"You can always ask me if you have any problems or just want help." Claire nodded to Rick. "I sure will." She stood up from her seat. "Thank you very much. I have to go now." Popuri walked with Claire to the door. "If my brother intimidates you, just tell me," she said in one of the most sing-song voice Claire had ever heard. Claire walked toward the gate and waved to Popuri.

Claire turned right and continued straight through the path, stopping when she reached the Yodel Ranch. She heard one of the cows moo and smiled to herself. She thought about buying her first cow and milking it after a while. She saw a little girl walk out the door and stare at her. Claire waved at the little girl and she waved back. "Are you going to buy something?" The little girl asked Claire. Claire shook her head. "No, but I'd like to talk to the owner of the ranch, if I may." The little girl nodded. "I'm May." She opened the door and ran inside.

Claire stood still. She wasn't sure what the kid did. A moment later, May opened the door and caught Claire's attention. "My grandfather's ready to see you, lady." Claire approached May and said, "please, call me Claire." She entered the house and saw an old man slumped over the counter. "Oh, good afternoon. You must be the new girl living in the farm. I'm Barley." He saw May enter the house. "And, that one there is May."

Claire looked at May and smiled. "I'm Claire," she said. "How are you enjoying Mineral Town?" Barley asked, his hands resting on the counter. "It's quite nice here. The people are very friendly." Barley nodded. "So, what brings you here?" Claire looked at Barley as he spoke. His back was already arched and his knuckles were swollen. "I wanted to ask about livestock." Barley nodded again. "I see," he looked at May and saw her signaling something. He nodded his head and she ran outside, not without shouting a hurried 'bye' to them. "You've come to the right place. I believe you've seen my cattle outside." Claire nodded. "Some of them are for sale. Usually, I just sell the mothers when the calves are old enough to live on their own. Cows produce the best milk when they are still lactating." Barley walked toward Claire. "I keep the bulls, unless that's what the people want to buy. I also sell sheep, animal medicine, food and all sorts of other stuff. I no longer sell horses within here though."

"Regarding your barn," Barley looked at Claire, staring straight into her eyes. "Let me help you set it up. Have you cleaned it?" Claire shook her head. "Not yet," she answered. "I was planning on doing it today." Barley straightened his back and Claire was sure she heard a sound. "Would you like me to help you?" Claire shook her head again. "No, thank you, but I would like for you to help me with the set up." Barley smiled at Claire and nodded. "Alright, just come by and tell me."

Claire bowed to him. "Thank you!" She looked at the watch strapped to her wrist. "Oh, I have to go now, thank you very much." Claire turned around and headed for the door. "Ah," Barley approached the door and opened it for her. "Before I forget, the shop is open from 10am to 3pm, all days except Mondays and holidays." Claire nodded, "thank you." She exited the ranch and ran toward her farm. She wanted start working on her barn. Rick said he and Popuri were coming over early tomorrow morning to help her out with her coop, so she wanted to finish cleaning her barn already.

She ran into her barn and surveyed the area. She got a pail from one of the corners and filled it with water. She ran to the tool shed outside and got the soap the mayor had given her for the barn. She poured the soap into a few of the other pails around the barn and distributed them equally, after which, she diluted each. She poured water on parts of the floor and grabbed the brush she found near the pails. She carried one of the pails with soap into the area she wanted to work with and started cleaning.

* * *

**It took me quite a while to finish this chapter. And, please, tell me if you find any inconsistency with the tenses. For whatever reason, while I was typing this earlier (starting from where May appeared), my brain suddenly switched to present tense. I had to retype every single verb I wrote.**

**Okay, now, for the reason as to why I downgraded this to "T":  
It will take quite a while before I get to any scene that would make this M-rated. I don't even know if by the time I type those scenes out, they would really be M-rated or just OT. When the time comes, I'll put an A/N at the top as a warning.**


	4. Chapter 4

Claire woke up earlier than usual. It was only 4:30 in the morning. She got up from her bed and washed her face. She was so tired that she couldn't help but drool a little in her sleep. She heated water and boiled some eggs. She turned on her tv, wanting to know what the weather was. Her TV glitched and the channels zoomed past the screen. It suddenly stopped and the screen was fuzzy.

Claire prepared breakfast for herself and ate it as quickly as she could. She then proceeded to prepare Ciel's breakfast. She headed to her bathroom and took a quick bath. She glanced at the clock. _5:25._ She set Ciel's food down on the floor and dressed herself for a busy day of work. She went out into her field and tended to the rest of the wild grass.

After working for more than two hours, Claire headed back into house. She needed to rest first. She has only been living here for less than a week and they didn't really do hands-on farming back in the university. She raised her arms chest level and stared at them. This was probably the last time they were going to be that light. She could use sunblock but that didn't mean that she wouldn't get darker.

Claire was wearing a short-sleeved shirt under overalls. Her hair was tied in a ponytail. She looked at herself in the mirror. She had sweat stains all over her shirt. Her ponytail was already messy and sweaty. She got a face-towel from her drawer and wiped her face and her nape. She fixed her hair and sat in front of her electric fan. Ciel started jumping on her again, so she picked him up and played with him. She hugged him and allowed him to sit on her lap. She shut her eyes and rested her head on her chair.

_Knock. Knock knock. Knock._

Claire opened her eyes and set Ciel down on the floor. She went to her door and opened it. Rick and Popuri were standing outside with a third person. She opened her door wide and ushered them in. She looked at the woman she didn't know. "Hi," Claire shut the door as she spoke. "I'm Claire." The woman looked at her and smiled. "Hi, I'm Karen. I'm his friend," she pointed at Rick.

"I'm sorry for suddenly inviting someone over to your place," Rick fixed his glasses as he spoke. "I was talking to her last night and she offered to help." Karen nudged him on the side of his stomach. "Er...well, I asked her to help." Claire smiled at Rick and shook her head. "It's no problem. The more the merrier, right?"

Popuri and Karen sat on Claire's couch. "Wow!" Popuri exclaimed as she bounced on the couch. "Your couch is so...bouncy!" She giggled as her butt bounced up and down. "Popuri," Rick called out and gave her a look that made her stop bouncing. "No, it's really alright," Claire tilted her head to the side and rested her hands on her hips. "I do it all the time." Rick shook his head and tapped his foot. "Well, this is your house."

Popuri looked away, blushing. "I'm sorry, Claire." Karen looked at her as Claire walked over to Popuri and placed her hands on each of Popuri's shoulders. "It's alright! No need to apologize. Please, don't cry." Popuri faced her and smiled, eyes glistened with tears threatening to fall. Karen glanced at Rick and saw the expression on his face. He looked relieved that this new person didn't seem to get annoyed at his sister. He noticed Karen looking at him and smiled. "Claire," he walked to Claire as he spoke. "Is it alright if we start already?"

Claire nodded and headed to the door. "Let's go," Rick said.

Claire and company walked over to the chicken coop. She opened the door and stepped inside. "Wow, so this is what six years does to a chicken coop," Karen commented. She looked at the bugs crawling all over the place. Claire grabbed one of the pails and filled it with water. Rick got another and did the same. Karen and Popuri followed their actions. Soon enough, they actually started cleaning the place. Cleaning it took over three hours. At some point, Popuri screamed as something began to crawl down her back. Fortunately, it was just a strand of hair that managed to get under her shirt.

When they had all finished, Claire offered them lunch in her house. They accepted her offer and ate cheerfully with her. When they had all finished eating, Popuri offered to wash Claire's plates but Claire rejected. "It's alright, I can do it myself. You've helped a lot already." Rick looked at Karen and whispered something to her. Karen nodded. "Claire," she said, suddenly. "Would you like us to help you clean your barn? And, that thing for your horse?" Claire shook her head. "I've already cleaned most of the barn." Karen grabbed Claire's hand. "It's settled then," she headed for the door. "We help Claire with the barn, and the stable!"

Claire made an awkward smile as she passed by Rick. His response was an equally awkward smile and a shrug. They headed for the barn and started cleaning it as well. Due to Claire's work the previous night, cleaning the barn took less than an hour. They then headed for the stable and cleaned it. The stable wasn't as big as the chicken coop which is why it took them a little more than an hour and a half to finish cleaning it.

As they were about to leave, Claire bowed in front of them and thanked them wholeheartedly. As the trio walked away, Barley and May entered Claire's farm, hand in hand. Barley looked at the farm. "You've done quite a lot to this place already." May looked at her grandfather as he spoke. A man suddenly entered the farm with a sack in his hands. He gently dropped the sack to the ground, a meter away from Barley. "Good afternoon, you must be Claire. I'm Harris. I'm the constable in this town," he raised his hat to her. "And, I'm the mayor's son."

Barley patted Harris on the back. "Thank you for the help, Harris." The man nodded to him. "It was nothing," he winked at May, "anything for the citizens of Mineral Town." Harris carried the sack again. "Where do I leave this?" Barley pointed to the barn. "In the barn, beside the shipping bin on the left." He caught the look on Claire's face. "I've been here a couple of times in the past." Claire nodded. It answered the question forming in her head.

"All you have to do," he began, "is spread that all over the ground, especially in the stalls." May tugged her grandfather's hand. Barley looked at her. "We'll be going now, she has to be in the church already." Claire thanked Barley and waved at them as they left her farm. Suddenly, Rick came walking back in with his own sack.

"I forgot to bring this earlier," he said. "I'll spread it all over the floor of your coop. Chickens enjoy a little dirt every now and then. Gives them something to do when they're not feeding." Claire followed Rick into the coop and watched him spread the contents of the sack all over the floor they had just finished cleaning. "I saw Barley and May exit here," he spoke as he scattered it around, "Harris as well, and I know he had a sack with him." Rick looked at Claire, their eyes locking. "I'm sure it's for something similar. I'll help you with that, too."

Claire threw her hands up and shook her head. "No, it's alright. You've really helped enough." Rick looked back at what he was doing. "Nah, I'll help," he spread the last remnants of the bag onto the ground. "Wait, do you know how to properly do it?" Claire shook her head. "I'll teach you." Rick exited the coop and Claire followed. They entered the barn and Rick opened the sack leaning against the wall. "This one is a bit too heavy to carry," he took a scoop of its contents and showed it to Claire. "So, you get a handful, or use whatever resource you can," he scattered it on the ground, "and do this." Claire copied him and did the same. They finished the entire sack and exited the barn.

"I'll be going now," Rick waved to Claire. "Mom's waiting for me." Claire waved back to him. "Thank you very much, for everything."

"No problem!" Rick shouted back to her as he ran back home. Claire watched him as he left. She headed back to her house and pet Ciel. "Rick is very helpful."


	5. Chapter 5

A woman was sleeping soundly on the bed, her body wrapped all over with a fleece blanket. She suddenly stirred and looked at the man standing in front of her mirror. He was combing his silvery-white hair with his fingers and humming an unfamiliar tune. "Skye," the woman sat up, covering her chest with whatever she had grabbed. "Can't you stay longer?"

Skye shook his head and slicked his hair back. "I'm sorry, ma belle, but I still need to get ready for work." He grabbed his shirt from the nearby chair and put it on. He walked over to the woman and gently planted a kiss on her forehead. "I am very busy and this little rendezvous with you has cost me much valuable time."

The woman wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed him on the lips. She pushed herself against him as he steadied himself on her bed. She slid her hand against the length of his arm and grabbed his wrist but he quickly twisted his hand out of her grip. She parted her mouth a little and let her tongue pass through. She licked his lips, then nibbled on his lower lip. Skye smiled and parted his lips a little. She tried pushing her tongue through the small opening he gave her. Skye trailed his hands from the woman's back to her shoulders and held them steadily. He caressed her arms and stopped when he reached her wrists. He grabbed her wrists and pulled it away from his neck.

"Be mine forever, Skye," the woman shouted as Skye approached the door. "Live with me forever. Let's be a family. I love you." She sobbed, causing her to choke on her words. This woman knew that Skye would never return if he walked out now. Skye ignored her words and waved at her as he held on to the door knob. The woman abruptly stood up, causing her to trip on her blanket. She ran to him as he opened the door. She hugged him from behind. "No, I won't let you go!"

Skye pulled her away from him and shook his head. "If I had known you were like this," he looked back and glared at her. "I would never have allowed myself to speak with you." The woman wailed as Skye left her apartment.

* * *

"Skye," a man who looked just like him stared at him. "How many times have I told you to stop getting yourself involved with women from around here?" The man had his arms folded across his chest. "Steiner," Sky mimicked the man's actions. "How many times have I told you to stop meddling with my affairs?"

Steiner dropped his hands to the side. He hated it whenever Skye mimicked him. "One of these days, you'll fall in love-" Skye shook his head and smirked. "-and when you do," his brother continued, asserting himself to prove a point. "These actions you seem to enjoy will haunt you and break you."

Skye rolled his eyes and sighed. "I already told you, that won't happen."

"How can you be so sure?"

Skye waved his hands and shut his eyes. "I won't allow myself to fall in love."

Steiner shook his head. "Just because some girl from high school screwed you over, that doesn't mean you won't ever fall in love again." Skye looked at his twin and regarded him for a minute. "And who said that," Skye shook his head as he spoke, "your _wife_?" He made sure to stress on the word wife and watched the reaction his brother would give him.

Steiner just looked at Skye blankly. "It wasn't just the girl," Skye clenched his fist tightly. He could feel his nails pressing deeply against his palms. "I would never have imagined my own twin would be involved." Steiner continued to stare at him. "I already told you," Steiner began, "she wanted something more serious. You weren't serious."

"If that wasn't serious," Skye snapped. Talking about this woman with his brother always caused him to snap. "Then, what is?" Steiner pushed back his sleeve and looked at his watch. "You kept fooling around, Skye. Flirting with other girls, kissing them under the mistletoe, volunteering for kissing booths, et cetera, those aren't stuff you do when you're in a serious relationship with someone."

Skye slammed his hand against the desk beside him. "Then, how is it that you got into the picture?" It was Steiner's turn to sigh. "I was simply the best friend she needed." Skye walked across the room and sat on the bed. "Are you sure you were just being a best friend?" Steiner and his wife were always best friends. Skye knew that his own twin disapproved of her falling in love with him. Skye also knew that Steiner had closeted feelings for her but didn't want to do anything about it. Steiner furrowed his eyebrows. "What are you talking about?"

Skye twirled a lock of his bangs. He had allowed his hair to finally grow just past his chin. "Did you really think I didn't know? I saw how you looked at her, how you held her whenever she was with you, how you spoke to her." Steiner raised his eyebrows, an act Skye understood as him asking Skye what his point was. "You were squirming your way out of the friendzone."

"Think whatever you want," Steiner raised his hands up in defeat. "I still say you'll find someone who you'll love more than her. Although, if karma comes into play, I have to wish you luck." Steiner walked over to the desk and grabbed his suitcase. "Well, I'm going now. You should stop filing too many leaves, I need more manpower in the company."

* * *

Skye walked around the streets. He was waiting for 7 o'clock before getting ready to go to the host club he was working in. Skye had three 'jobs'. In the morning, he worked in the Sales department of the family company. At night, he either worked in the host club or as a thief. He didn't seem like it but he enjoyed stealing. He wasn't a kleptomaniac though. He was very finicky about the things he stole.

Ever since that incident he had with his ex-girlfriend and his twin, his love life went from bad to worse and it set him up to be the playboy he was. And, to his advantage, he had a certain ability which quite a lot of women couldn't resist. He had the ability to make women fall into a state of paralysis whenever he looked straight into their eyes. He always had his way with women so using the ability wasn't always necessary.

"Skye," a woman called out in a sing-song voice. She ran to him, arms wide open. Skye kept his hands in his pocket, turned to face her and smiled at her. "Isn't it a little too early, Dahlia?" She hugged him and kissed him on the lips. "Oh don't joke like that, Skye," she said. "I've really missed you." She tightened the hug. "You were away for so long. Where did you go?"

"Oh," Skye looked at her and glanced down. She was wearing a tank-top. "Didn't I tell you? I stayed with my grandparents for the week. They said they wanted to see me again." A lie, Skye thought to himself. He knew she would believe him. Skye was actually out stealing stuff again. Skye removed his left hand from his pocket and looked at his watch. _6:50_, "I have to go now." The woman frowned at him, "so soon?"

Skye nodded at her. She kissed him again on the lip and released him from the hug. "See you!" Skye waved at her as he walked away. At exactly 7, he arrived at the host club and entered through the backdoor. He put on the suit assigned to him, fixed his hair and walked into the lobby. He approached a group of ladies and put his arms around two of them. "Ladies, how may I help you?" The woman on his right turned to face him. "You're late," she said. Skye patted her on the head, "I apologize. It won't happen again."

"I really hope not," the woman on his left spoke. She turned to him and placed her left hand on his chest. "It was embarrassing to our friends. It's their first time here." Skye looked at the three other women standing in front of him and bowed his head. He looked at the two women on his side, "how do I make it up to you?"

The woman on his right uttered a soft moan. Skye turned his head to face her. She put a hand on his cheek and pulled him closer. She whispered in his ear, "how about a ménage à trois?" She nibbled on his earlobe as he whispered back, "not tonight, bella." The woman frowned at him. Skye saw the expectant looks on the faces of the other girls standing around him. He ushered the two around. "Why don't we sit, Ladies?" He turned to smile at the other three and they followed him.

* * *

**I got writer's block while thinking up of what I would let Claire do next so this is what came out. I'm pretty sure you can guess who's going to get a lot of character development. Oh, and another thing, chapters focusing on other characters is not going to be unusual. They'll happen whenever I can't think up of something for Claire, just like right now. But, it would really just depend on how I feel when I type it out.**


	6. Chapter 6

Claire walked around her farm. Something was bothering her. Ciel ran to her and jumped on her leg. Claire picked him up and kissed him on the forehead. She looked at him and patted his head. She placed him back inside the house. She walked to the path leading straight to the rest of Mineral Town. Instead of turning right at the first corner, she walked straight forward. She looked at the first house she passed. _Aja Winery _was written on the sign just outside.

Claire entered the door. A woman with jet-black hair was walking back and forth. She suddenly stopped and looked at Claire. "Hello, would you like some wine or grape juice?"

"Ah, I-I," Claire shook her head. "I was just looking around. I was told that this was a good place to go to." Manna tucked a lock of hair behind her ear. "Oh, yes," she clasped her hands, "if you're looking for wine." Manna turned around and approached a big double door in the middle of the wall. "Do you drink wine?"

Claire nodded. "It used to be a family luxury. My grandfather had a vineyard." Manna smiled. "Ah, so you know how to taste wine, right?" Claire nodded. "Please, sit there," Manna pointed on the couch slightly opposite the gigantic door. "I'll let you taste something." Manna entered the room and took a while before she returned to Claire. Claire sat comfortably on the couch. It was just like what her grandmother used to own. Manna walked back into the room with two glasses. "This one is our experimental wine," she handed the first glass to Claire and watched her take a sip. "And this one," she handed the second glass, "is our traditional wine." Claire tasted it and nodded.

"The experimental one tastes good but it lacks _something._ The other one is just amazing." Manna grinned at Claire and took the emptied glasses. "Thank you, I'll be telling my husband." Manna turned around and walked toward her kitchen. "Ah, I forgot to introduce myself." She let out an awkward laugh. "I'm Manna. I'll just bring these to the kitchen."

A man walked down the stairs. He looked at Claire. "You must be the new girl," he spoke as he descended the steps. "I'm Duke." Claire nodded at him and extended her hand to him. "I'm Claire." Manna walked back into the room. "Duke, Claire has something to say about both wines." She looked at Claire and grinned. "Is it alright for you to tell him?" Claire nodded, "it's no problem." She looked at Duke. "The experimental wine tasted good but it lacked a certain something. I can't quite say what it is that I think it lacks but it just lacks something. The traditional one is just amazing. One of the best I've tasted. It reminded me of home."

Duke laughed and patted Claire on the back. "That's great!" Claire laughed along. This was the first time something truly reminded her of the life she left behind when she transferred to the city. Manna nudged Duke on the side. "It's very nice to know that we have more people to talk about fine winery with." Duke nodded. "Not everyone here is into the true quality. They understand quality but not true quality."

"Aja knew a lot about wine." Manna's voice trailed off as she spoke. Duke saw the confusion in Claire's face. "Aja is our daughter. She left for the city a while back." Duke looked down as he spoke. "We really miss her." Silence filled the room. "Ah," Claire stroked her hair as she spoke. "I have to go now." Duke laughed. "I'm sorry, it must have been awkward." Claire let an awkward smile creep into her face. "Sort of." Duke laughed again. "She tells it like it is."

Claire waved goodbye to them and exited their shop. She walked forward and stopped when she arrived in front of the inn. She entered the inn and was surprised by what she called the 'welcoming committee'. "Good afternoon!" A woman whose hair was tied back in a braid ran to Claire. "Good afternoon!" A man from the counter called out. The woman stared at her. "Hey," the woman rested her chin on the ball of her hand, supporting her elbow with her other hand and tilted her head to the side. "You're the new girl, right? I'm Ann!" Her sudden movement surprised Claire. "You must be hungry." Ann declared, nodding to herself. Claire's eyes widened as she gave a quick nod. "Great, hmmm," Ann looked at the floor and thought to herself for a while. "Could you wait a while? I'll serve you a feast!" She nodded to herself then looked at her father. "It's alright, right, Dad?"

The man pumped his fist forward and stuck out his thumb. "A-okay, dear! She is a special guest, after all." Claire blushed at the little announcement. Ann ushered her toward a table near the counter and helped her to her seat. "The food will be ready in a while." Ann smiled as she spoke. Her father entered the kitchen and she followed. After a minute or two, she went back out and headed to Claire. She grabbed one of the seats around the table and sat facing Claire. "What's your name?"

"I'm Claire."

"What brought you here?" She crossed her legs, rested her elbows on her knees and rested her chin on her palms. Claire rested her hands on the table. "I was in Aja's Winery earlier, then, I remembered that the building right next to it was the inn that I had heard about. I heard the food here is excellent, so, naturally, I wanted to try it." Ann nodded continuously as she spoke. "My dad is a great cook! I'm sure you'll love his cooking." Claire smiled at Ann, "I'm sure I will."

After more than ten minutes, Ann's father came out of the kitchen with a large tray filled with food in his hands. He slowly set down the different meals he prepared in front of Claire. He prepared a full course for her: appetizer, soup, main course, dessert and beverage. "Eat up!" They watched as Claire nibbled through the appetizer, sip the soup, swallow the main course, munched the dessert and gulped the beverage. "I'm Doug."

Claire finished drinking her beverage. "Ah, that was just so heavenly, Doug! I'm Claire, by the way." She shook hands with Doug. "It's nice to finally meet you," he said as he released her hand. "It's my pleasure. I feel so lucky to have entered here and tasted such good food. How much do I owe you?" Claire reached for her pocket as she spoke. Ann placed a hand on Claire's arm. "Oh, no! It's on the house." She shook her head. "Like my dad said, you're a special guest."

Claire bowed to them and thanked them heartily. It was the first time someone outside her immediate family or circle of friends had given her free food. She exited the inn and continued walking down the road. She stopped when she reached the end. She looked to her left and saw the church. She looked to her right and saw the square. Claire turned left and walked toward the church. There were two children talking loudly with one another and a pastor, not too far from them. Claire saw that May had noticed her and approached her. "Claire!" The little girl called out as she ran.

Claire patted her on the head. "Let me introduce you," May pulled Claire along with her and she pointed to a little boy about the same age as her. "This one is Stu." She looked at the pastor but refused to point at him. "He is Carter." Claire bowed to the pastor. "Hi, I'm Claire." The pastor extended his hand to Claire. "Nice to meet you, Claire." She took his hand. Claire released Carter's hand when May spoke. She tugged on Claire's sleeve and looked straight into the woman's eyes. "Do you go to church often?"

Claire shook her head and crouched beside May. "I hadn't been able to attend to much of the church services when I was living in the city." May quickly glanced at Carter. "Does that make you a bad person?" Claire let out an awkward chuckle and looked at Carter. He shook his head and placed a hand on May's head. May looked up at the pastor as he spoke. "No, that doesn't make her a bad person. But, it's not entirely right to skip on it." He looked at Claire and smiled. She reciprocated the smile and glanced at both kids. "Maybe, you two can be my church buddies, if you agree."

May and Stu looked at each other, smiled and nodded. "Of course!" Stu grabbed Claire's hand. Claire patted his head. "Have you met my sister?" Claire shook her head. Stu pulled her away and ran to the clinic. "I'll be coming back!" She shouted as she found herself avoiding falling. She ran with Stu and entered the clinic. "Elli," Stu called out as he released Claire from his grip. He put his hand in his pocket. "I have something to show you, and Claire is here, too." Elli stood up and got into Claire's view. She stepped out from behind the counter and walked to Stu. "What is i—AAAAAAAH!" Stu laughed at his sister and showed his palm to Claire. There was a small beetle crawling, attempting to fly. "Get that thing away from me, Stu." Elli ran back behind the counter and put her hand to her chest.

Stu runs behind Claire and hides from his sister. "I didn't do anything wrong!" Stu called out from behind Claire. She looked at him and smiled. "I didn't do anything wrong, right, Claire?" Claire looked at Stu, then at Elli, then back at Stu. She shook her head. "I don't think you should have scared your sister." She saw the tears welling in Stu's eyes. "Don't cry!" Claire looked at Elli as Stu ran out of the clinic. "I-I'm so sorry. I didn't mean to make him cry."

Elli shook her head. "He's always like that. Thank you for telling him off." Claire tilted her head to the side and gave Elli a blank look. "No wonder he cried..." Her voice trailed off as she spoke. "Ah," Claire looked at Elli and extended her hand. "I'm Claire." Elli took her hand. "I'm Elli, Stu's older sister." The doctor suddenly exited his office. He looked at Claire. "Are you a patient?" He squinted as he asked the question. "Wait, you're not from around here, are you?" Claire blinked and extended her hand to the doctor. "I'm Claire, the one who bought the farm."

"Oh, yes, yes," the doctor rubbed his chin as he spoke. He noticed Claire's extended hand and took it. "I'm Trent. If you ever feel bad, just come here. We're always available, except on Wednesdays." He nodded to himself, his voice trailing away with every word. "Are you healthy?" Claire's eyes widened at the sudden question. She nodded. "Are you sure? Wait, come with me." Trent released her hand and walked into his office. Claire followed him in and saw him searching for something in his drawer. "I need your help with something." Trent looked at Claire and gently placed a bottle on the table. "I'm not too sure how effective this is. It's supposed to help recover some strength." He took the bottle and poured a bit of its contents onto a small cup. "Can you try it out?"

Claire nodded and took the cup from the doctor. She took a small sip and drank the rest in one, fast gulp. She stuck out her tongue. "The aftertaste is even worse." Trent nodded. "Did it work?" Claire nervously nodded. The medicine made her heart beat faster but it gave her an energy boost. "That's great!" Trent returned the bottle to his drawer and took another one. "I-I'm s-sorry," Claire backed away with her hands extended in front of her chest. "I have to go now."

Trent nodded his head and returned the bottle to his drawer. "Thank you very much for your help. It was very, very appreciated." Claire bowed to him and turned around. She walked out of his office and waved to Elli. She exited the clinic and walked back to the church. The kids were no longer there. She saw Carter enter the church and followed him. She wanted to apologize to Stu and explain herself. She hated seeing kids cry because of her. Carter turned to face her when she entered the church. "Oh, Claire, good to see you here." Claire smiled at him and asked where the kids were. "Ah, they went home already. May left when she saw Stu run into his grandmother's house." Claire looked at the floor. She felt guilty for breaking the fun they seemed to enjoy earlier.

"Don't be sad." Carter placed his hand on Claire's shoulder. He squinted his eyes and looked directly into hers. "Can you help me out?" Claire nodded. "You see that man over there?" Carter pointed to a figure sitting on one of the left pews. "He's new just like you and he seems a bit sad. Can you try to cheer him up?" Claire nodded again and walked over to the figure crouching in the very first pew.

"Hi," she approached him and sat beside him. "This isn't taken, right?" The man nodded. "Hi," he kept his head down as he spoke. "I'm Cliff. I-is there something on my face?" Claire shook her head. "I'm Claire." Cliff nodded and looked at Claire. "I'm sorry for seeming so tense." Claire shook her head and patted his back. "Relax!" She saw Cliff's muscles relax and his expression turning to a smile. "Thanks."

"It's nothing." Claire smiled back at him. "I hope you feel better now." Cliff nodded. "That's great." Claire looked at her watch. "I think I'll be leaving now," Cliff stood from his seat and turned to look at Claire. "It was fun speaking with you." Carter looked at them and smiled. He and Claire watched as Cliff walked out of the church. "At least, you tried. Thank you." Claire nodded and waved to Carter. "I guess I'll be going now, too. I don't want to miss the supermarket." Carter nodded and waved back at her. Claire exited the church and headed for the supermarket.

"Claire!" Karen called out from behind the counter as Claire walked into the supermarket. She approached Claire and winked. "You probably need a lot of new supplies, am I right?" Claire nodded and smiled. "Hey, wait here for a while, okay?" Karen walked to where her father was and spoke with him. She and her argued for a bit until she won. She got something from under the counter and walked back to Claire. "Here, a gift." Karen gave the small pack of seeds to Claire. Claire took the pack and placed it in the rucksack she had with her. "Thank you very much, Karen." She looked to the direction of Karen's dad. She began to walk toward him. "Thank you very much, too, mister..."

"Jeff," Karen's father looked at Claire. "Please call me Jeff." Claire nodded and smiled at him. "Thank you very much, Jeff." A woman walked into the store from the door not too far from the counter. She told him something and they began arguing. She took a quick glance to her side and saw Claire. She stopped the argument and stared at the new face in her store. "Oh, hello," she relaxed the muscles in her face. "You must be Claire," she gave Karen a quick glance. "Karen told me a lot about you."

"Mom!" Karen called out from behind Claire. She hid her face as she blushed. "I'm Sasha. It's nice to finally meet you." She shook hands with Claire. "I'm sorry to have to leave right away, even though I've just met you." Claire shook her head. "It's really alright, I was about to leave already." Sasha faced her husband and told him to go back inside with her. Claire faced Karen as the latter was apologizing. Claire shook her head. "It's nothing, don't worry about it." Claire smiled at Karen and waved goodbye. Karen accompanied her to the door.

Claire exited the supermarket and continued through the small path. She saw Stu standing around outside a house. "Stu," she called out to him and waved. The young boy looked at her and grinned. She walked over to him and crouched in front of him. "I'm sorry about earlier," she patted his head. "You didn't do anything wrong, it's just that I don't think you should scare people older than you," she smiled at him, "especially girls."

Claire stood straight and looked at the sign just beside the house Stu came from. "Are you going to the library?" Claire nodded. "I'll go with you." They walked into the library. The woman with the black hair that Claire saw in Saibara's shop the other day was mumbling to herself. Claire tried to approach the woman but she just turned around and walked. She bumped into Claire. "Ah," the woman fixed her glasses. "I'm so sorry." She looked away from Claire and saw Stu. "H-hello, Stu."

Stu waved at her. "Have you met Claire?" He pointed at the blonde woman beside him. "Oh, not yet," her eyes trailed from Stu to Claire. "Hi, I'm Mary." She extended her hands and looked down. Her cheeks were red. Claire shook hands with her. "As he pointed out, I'm Claire. I bought the abandoned farm." She smiled at Mary who reciprocated the action. Mary opened her mouth but shut it at once. Her head perked up and she looked at the stairs. She tilted her head to the side.

Claire looked at the stairs as she heard the distinct sound of footsteps. A man emerged, holding a book in his hands, followed by a woman supporting herself on his shoulders. The man looked at Claire, then, the woman did the same. "Ah, dad, mom," Mary looked at her parents. "This is Claire," she pointed to the woman standing beside her. "She's the one who bought the farm the mayor has been trying to sell." Mary's father walked toward Claire. "Hi, I'm Basil and this," he pointed to his wife, "is Anna." Anna nodded at Claire. Mary walked to one side of the library with Stu as her parents spoke to the newbie.

After a few minutes, Stu walked toward Claire and tugged at her sleeve. He looked at Anna and spoke. "Can I go with her now?" Claire's eyes widened at the child's question. Anna raised her hand to her mouth and chuckled. "Of course," Basil answered his question. Stu pulled Claire away as she bade the three farewell. Stu brought Claire into the house he was standing outside of. He entered the house and ran toward his grandmother, Claire still in his grasp. "Grandma," he called out to the old lady. "Meet Claire."

The old woman looked at Claire and smiled. "So, you're the one who bought the farm, am I right?" Claire nodded at her question. Stu was still holding on to her. "Hi, I'm Ellen." Claire walked to her and shook hands with her. "Would you like some cookies? I made a fresh batch." Claire shook her head. "Thank you for the offer but I'm still full." Stu released Claire from his grip, grabbed a plate and dropped a few cookies onto it. Claire rubbed her wrist. The kid's grip was strong enough to leave a mark. Stu went back to standing beside Claire. He gave her the plate. "Taste it." He got a cookie and started biting it. Claire looked at the young boy, shook her head and giggled. She got one cookie and tasted it. She offered some to Ellen who quickly declined, saying she just ate her share. Claire looked at Ellen and grinned. "This tastes so good." She started nodding to herself. "Can I get more?"

Ellen chuckled as she nodded. "Of course you may, dear." Claire ate more cookies and conversed with the old lady, sometimes answering some of Stu's 'dumb kiddy' questions. When she had finished exchanging stories with Ellen, Claire left the house and headed home, using the path in front of Basil's house. She walked straight and only stopped when she reached the path that intersected with Saibara's place. She heard a faint shout and that got her curious. She knew that judging from the voice, it must have been Popuri. She walked toward the poultry farm and saw a chicken running toward her. She grabbed the chicken as Popuri screamed for her to pick it up. She rushed to Claire and took the chicken. Popuri sighed. "Thanks a lot, Claire. I accidentally let this one get passed me. If you hadn't been there, I'm sure I would get into trouble with Rick." She stroked the chicken's neck. "Do you like chickens?" Claire nodded. "That's good. People who like chickens are good." She turned around and headed for the chicken coop. "My brother is inside." Claire nodded, "I'll visit him."

Claire entered the house and saw Rick standing in front of the table with Lillia standing beside him. "Popuri," Rick turned around and saw Claire standing by the door. "Oops, sorry. I thought you were Popuri." He spoke to his mom and Claire saw a bunch of eggs on the table. The door suddenly opened and Popuri walked in. "There you are, Popuri," Rick looked at his sister and raised his eyebrow. "We collected a lot of eggs this time," he moved away from the table to show Popuri and Claire the eggs lined up on it. "Hmm," he looked at Claire. "Do you like eating eggs, Claire?" Claire nodded. "Great," Rick took three eggs and handed them to Claire. "You can have these. They're spa-boiled." Claire took the eggs. "Oh wait," Rick noticed how awkwardly she was holding them. He took a small box near his kitchen sink and stuffed it with dried grass. "Here," he raised the box in front of Claire's hands. "Put the eggs here. You seem to be having a difficult time."

Claire placed the eggs in the box and took it. "Thanks!" She smiled at Rick and chatted with Lillia for a while. After a few minutes of conversing with her neighbors, she left the poultry farm. She decided to take the other route back to her farm. It wasn't dark yet and she wanted to properly check the forest out. As she passed, she stepped on a few twigs that snapped under her feet. Claire jumped when she suddenly heard a loud sound coming from the eastern side of the forest. She looked around and saw a man chopping wood with an ax. She called out to the man and he turned to face her. Claire was genre savvy and she knew the kinds of consequences her actions could have done, which is why she was standing more than a fifteen steps away.

"Who are you?" The man was still holding on to his ax. He was completely facing Claire and had a relaxed stance. "I-I'm Claire." She stood her ground. Every murder movie she had ever watched flashed through her mind. "Are you the one who bought the farm?" The man pointed to the hidden field behind him. Claire nodded. "I'm Gotz, the carpenter." He rested his his free hand on his hip. "Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you, too, Gotz!" Claire said out loud as she walked toward him. "I was just going to pass by. I'll be going to my house now. See you again some time." Gotz nodded to her and continued chopping wood. Claire ran to her house and was greeted by Ciel. She placed her hand on her chest and felt for her heartbeat. Her heart was beating fast. She managed to scare herself silly in front of someone she had just met. She hoped he didn't notice how she was beginning to get paranoid. Claire shook her head and rubbed Ciel's belly. She then proceeded to make a light dinner for herself and one for her puppy.


	7. Chapter 7

Early the next morning, Claire ran out into her field and worked on all the weeds growing all around. She pulled them out of the soil and threw them on the small wooden bin she had beside her. She spent the next three hours doing just that. At some point, she heard Ciel whimper from inside the house, so, she stopped what she was doing and went inside. As fast as he could, Ciel ran to her, barked cheerfully and wagged his tail excitedly. Claire patted his head and stroked his nose. She plucked out a weed and proceeded to tickle her puppy with it. She was busy enjoying herself when Harris arrived and greeted her.

"You've a letter here for you." Harris waved the large envelope in the air. Claire let out a confused expression as she walked towards Harris. She tilted her head to the side and held out her hand to accept the mail. "I didn't think you were the mailman as well." She smiled at Harris as she said this and he let out a low laugh.

Harris handed Claire the item. "My father asked me to send it to you directly." He gave her a casual salute as he turned around and waved goodbye.

Claire gently opened the seal of the large envelope. She slightly peered inside before taking out the paper inside. She read the big letters written on its top portion. She was holding the deed to the farm. She let out a stifled scream of excitement. She carefully slid the document back into the envelope and ran to her house, calling for her puppy to follow her. She carefully hid the envelope in one of the drawers of her bookshelf. She started jumping around her room, turning in intervals. Ciel started getting excited as well, barking and jumping as she moved. She propelled Ciel to chest level and hugged him. "I officially own the land now!" She squeezed him lightly and swayed her body sidewards. Ciel licked her face and she laughed.

She let Ciel back down and rushed to grab her telephone. She quickly dialed her aunt's telephone number but stopped midway. She hadn't told her grandfather that she didn't have the title until only today and she was sure he would be furious if she told him. She put the phone back to its place and lay miserably onto her bed. She took in a deep breath and shut her eyes. She grabbed a lock of her hair and twirled it between her fingers. She rested it between her nose and mouth, playing around with the idea of having a mustache. She let out the breath she was holding and slowly opened her eyes.

She quickly stood up and walked to her door. She opened it slightly, seeing if Ciel was going to wake up from his now peaceful sleep. She gently shut the door behind her and looked back at her field. It was still so full of weeds and unnecessary garbage. She continued working on her farm until it had already turned relatively dark. She looked at the sky and tried to guess the time. From the position of the sun, she was able to deduce that it was somewhere between a quarter to six and a quarter after six. She looked at the shipping bin. She longed to finally drop something into it.

Claire walked leisurely back into her house. Ciel cheerfully greeted her.

* * *

Months quickly passed as Claire worked hard on her farm. Within a week after Rick had helped her with her chicken coop, she had bought 3 hens from him. A month after that, she had bought a rooster. After 8 months, she was proud to say that she had already over 10 chickens producing eggs for her to sell, eat, or incubate. She was very pleased with her chickens. Rick always came over to check on them, but after 3 months, he decided that she was capable enough as she was already doing a good enough job and that she could go to him only when she really no longer knew what to do.

A fortnight after purchasing her first 3 chickens, Claire bought a cow and a sheep. She decided that she wanted the two to keep each other company even though they were of different species. Feeling that the eggs, the wool, the crops and the milk she was able to get was going to sustain her living for over more than two more months, Claire decided to have her cow impregnated after milking her for slightly over 4 months. A month and a half before the calf was born, Claire had purchased another sheep from Barley.

Barely two months into the business, Barley had given Claire a gift, a colt. He was worried that he was not going to be able to take care of this horse properly so he decided to give it to her. She accepted the foal wholeheartedly and named him Langit. Within a few weeks, she got Langit to trust her completely. Although, she believed getting Ciel's trust was much easier.

During her first summer, a man around her age had knocked on her door sometime during the morning of one of the first few days of the season. When she opened the door, the first thing that caught her attention was the violet bandana he wore. It wrapped snugly around the top of his head.

"Good morning! I'm Kai." He reached for the knot of his bandana located by his nape and pulled it down. "Zack told me about you, so I decided to meet you." He looked at the expression on her face and saw the dark rings under her eyes. "I-I'm sorry if I woke you, or something." He smiled sheepishly as he apologized.

Claire shook her head and smiled back at him. "Good morning to you, too! I'm Claire." She invited him inside to have breakfast with her as she was just getting ready to eat. Kai accepted the invitation and they discussed a lot of things related to the beach and some of the townspeople.

By the time fall came, Claire was already very well acquainted with a lot of the townspeople. One could even say that she was best friends with Popuri. One day, Duke had asked her if she could help him with harvesting grapes in his vineyard with the agenda of having her taste more of his experimentations. He had also told her that she could bring someone with her as well. She quickly remembered Cliff and his dilemma and she thought that this might be the perfect opportunity for him. She wasn't wrong. After the harvest, Duke and Manna were very pleased with the help they got from both. They found out about Cliff's problem and decided to give him the job.

* * *

It was snowing hard as Claire made her way through to the beach. She leisurely entered the square and saw Cliff walking oddly on the other side. She called out to him but instead of answering her, he fell flat on his face on the ground. She quickly ran to him, attempting to help him up but his weight was a little too much for her. She half-dragged him to one of the benches and placed her jacket over his shoulders.

She ran as quickly as she could to the inn to get help. She could feel her feet sinking low on the snow beneath her feet. At last, she reached the inn. She called out to both Ann and Doug, panting as she did so. Ann rushed to her side and asked her what was wrong.

"Cliff," she gasped, trying to put more air into her lungs. "Fainted," she took in another quick breath, "in the square. Please help me—" Doug rushed out of the inn as she spoke. Ann asked her to sit down but she refused, shaking her head. Ann ran out of the inn and Claire followed, taking a slightly slower pace. When she reached the square, Ann and Doug were walking towards the path to the clinic, Cliff's arms around their necks.

Claire noticed a small, rectangular object lying on the ground by the bench. She picked it up and surveyed it. It was a photograph of a woman and a young girl beside her. She placed it in her pocket and headed for the clinic. Inside, she found Doug speaking with Elli, hearing the words 'Cliff', 'fine', and 'doctor' every few seconds. Claire walked passed the lobby and into the room where Cliff was resting. He was lying peacefully still, Ann standing beside him.

The doctor entered the room. "It seems he collapsed due to stress…" his voice trailed off as he spoke. Claire knew he was hiding something but understood that it was probably because Cliff was suffering from something only his family should know. Cliff sat up with a start, startling Ann and Claire. He grabbed at his hair and pushed his head back down to the pillow. Trent shook his head as he looked from Cliff, to Ann, to Claire and back to Cliff again. "I'm sorry, you two, but I think Cliff would need his rest now."

Ann nodded and exited the room. Claire was about to exit as well when she felt the corner of the photograph against her leg. "Oh," she pulled out the photograph and showed it to Trent. "I'll just give this back to him." Trent nodded. Claire approached Cliff and saw the latter looking at the object on her hand.

Cliff took in a deep breath and pushed his bangs back, baring his forehead. A small scar was visible just below his hairline. "That's my mom and my younger sister." He looked straight into Claire's eyes. "I always hated where we lived, so I ran away from home. After two years…" his voice trailed off and he looked at his hands. Claire saw a sudden change in his expression. "It was snowing just like this when I left." He looked back at Claire. "After two years of exploring the world, I decided to go back home. When I got there, I found out that my mother had died of some illness a few months before I returned and my sister moved away, or well, ran off with some strange man." Claire gave Cliff the picture and patted him on the shoulder. Cliff turned around and pulled the blanket over his shoulder. Claire silently left the room.

* * *

**I know that it seems rushed already, but that's because I feel like I'm trailing away from the main story already.**


	8. Chapter 8

The small path that led back to her farm was very dark. Claire could feel the strands of hair at the back of her head rise as she remembered the different ghosts that usually popped up in horror movies when the characters were in a similar location. Her heart raced faster as she muffled a scream when a small bird cracked a twig. She sighed in relief and ran straight to her little house.

Standing in front of her door was a man not less than 40 years old, his dark brown hair scattered across his face.

Claire recognized him immediately and approached him cautiously. "W-what are you doing here?" The man swept his hair away from his face and directed his gaze at her. "My master," he began, "wishes to speak with you."

Claire shook her head. "I already told him that I don't want to speak with him." She crossed her arms in front of her chest and looked away from the man. "How did you find me?" she asked.

The man straightened his stance, deeply inhaling as he did so. "My master has sources, none of which you are allowed to know."

Claire relaxed and sighed. "My grandfather, huh?" she said under her breath. She pulled her keys out of her pocket and twirled it around her fingers. "Thanks for telling me these, but I think it's time you left." She walked over to her door and inserted her keys through the keyhole.

"That is not all, miss," the man pulled out a letter from his pocket and handed it to her. "Your grandfather asked me to hand this over to you."

Claire took the letter, telling the man a quick 'thank you', and rushed inside her small house. She sat on her bed and surveyed the envelope. _'To my little lightning' _was neatly written on it. She hesitatingly opened the envelope, fearing for whatever could have been written in it. She pulled out the bundle of paper inside and read it.

_'Claire,_

_Have I told you that I was diagnosed with cancer?'_

Claire gasped, bringing her free hand over her mouth.

_'Your grandmother always scolded me for smoking and this is its consequence. I have decided that I want to go back _

_to my old home in Forget-Me-Not Valley and live the last days of my life there. This may sound extremely _

_inconvenient for you, but, I wish for you to live with me there.'_

She read through the rest of the letter, tears streaming down her eyes. Her eyes widened as she read the last part of the letter. The part with her grandfather's dying wish.

_'I have two dying wishes which I would be grateful if you fulfilled. I wish for you to live with me in Forget-Me-Not _

_Valley and for you to marry Nathaniel when I die.'_

She crumpled the paper in her hand and threw it on the floor. She knew that only part of the letter was true, and the last part confirmed that. She knew that Nathaniel probably spoke to her grandfather and agreed to pay for all his treatment, with her as the price. She put her hands to her eyes and sobbed. Ciel ran to her and rested his head on her lap.

* * *

"I'll move with you to the valley after New Year's, is that alright, grandfather?" Claire twirled the telephone cord between her fingers.

"_Enjoy your last days there, Claire,"_

"What did Nathaniel tell you?" There was silence on the other end of the line. Claire gripped the telephone cord and sighed. _'He's not going to tell me now, is he?'_, she thought.

"I think it was unfair for you to leave him like that. Nathaniel is a good boy. I can't see why you left him. And, he even offered to pay for my treatment."

Claire stared at her ceiling. Her house was going to be given to her cousin—or well, sold with an incredible discount. She had only lived here for two years—well, nearly. "I have my _reasons_."

"_Well, whatever it is, forgive him for it. He's a good boy. I've known his father for years."_

"I can't and I don't think I ever will." Her grip on the telephone cord tightened. She hated having to remember that single memory.

"_It's my dying wish."_

Claire bowed her head. "I'll see what I can do."

"_That's my little lightning. Goodbye." _Claire heard a snort at the end of the line and realized that her grandfather wasn't alone. _"See, my boy, I told you I'd get her to marry you." _She knew her grandfather probably did not notice that he left the phone up, so she listened to their conversation.

"_Thank you very much. My father would be very pleased."_

"_I still can't believe my Claire could do that. You say you caught her in the arms of another man?" _Claire's eyes widened. She covered the the phone with her hand, making sure she wouldn't be heard if she happened to utter a sound. _"And you still want to marry her after that? You are very noble, Nathaniel." _Claire cringed. Wasn't it actually the other way around?

"_I'm hoping to marry her next year, might I have your blessing for that?"_

"_You have my full blessing." _She heard her grandfather cough. _"Do you know who the man was?"_

"_Unfortunately, I don't. But, if I ever see him again, I'd have him arrested for adultery. After all, Claire and I are civilly married, am I right?" _Claire nearly dropped the phone she was holding. Sweat started building up under her bangs.

"_You are?" _Her grandfather's tone was full of curiosity, as if he didn't know what the other person was talking about.

"_It was in that document I had you sign when she was still 17."_

"_Ah, yes, yes, I remember now. Then, why are you still seeking for my blessing?"_

"_She doesn't know we're married. It would be nice for her to know that our public marriage will have your blessing, unlike our secret civil one."_

"_Well, it was a very odd price. Why did you choose her as your bride?"_

"_Your daughters were too old, while your other granddaughters were too young, she was just—" _Nathaniel paused. _"I think the phone is still up. I hope she didn't hear any of this."_

"_Let me check," _Claire heard her grandfather pick up the phone. She sat still and hoped that nothing would make a sound loud enough for her grandfather to hear. There was silence between the two. _"She's gone. I think I heard her put it down when I told her goodbye. She didn't seem too happy about our conversation."_

"_I really hope she didn't."_


	9. Chapter 9

_Thud._

Skye fell to the wooden floor. A man hovered above him, his face red with rage and embarrassment. There were four men holding this man back and a woman was shouting at him. She looked at Skye, then proceeded to shout back at the man. She pushed the man back and ran to Skye.

Skye wiped his mouth. There was a slight sting when he hit the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand. Blood smeared his knuckles as he moved his hand away. The woman took a handkerchief from her pocket and dabbed it on Skye's wound. Skye shrugged her efforts away and stood up. He dusted his pants and made his way through the crowd that gathered.

Skye took his knit cap from his coat pocket and placed it on his head, pulling it until it reached his eyebrows. He buttoned his coat and walked out of the bar.

The wind was cool against his skin. He could feel the heat rising just below his cheek. He walked through the small, dimly-lit street, murmuring to himself. "I believe this is going to bruise."

Skye continued walking down the path and passed through a forest. He stopped by a large lake, and sat by the water. He rested on his back, his hands behind his head. He gazed at the stars, naming the constellations he could see. He closed his eyes. The memory of his ex-girlfriend—now, sister-in-law—flooded his mind.

He remembered how she looked when she asked to break up with him, stating that she wanted to be with someone who had eyes only for her. She looked desperate. _'Why did she look so desperate?'_, Skye had always wondered to himself. He would have expected her to look more sad or hurt, but not desperate.

At first, he was just confused as to why she looked like that. The days passed and little by little, he found out that his brother was always speaking with her on the telephone, his face always happy, if not giddy. Weeks started passing, he noticed that she still kept visiting their house, spending all her time with his twin.

During their family reunion the next year, Steiner, while holding onto her hand, announced to their family that they were engaged. Skye had finally understood why she had looked so desperate. She was already in love with Steiner and their relationship was the only thing that hindered her from going all-out with his twin.

Skye had wanted to punch Steiner at that moment, but he saw the happiness in his twin's face and he knew he couldn't try to destroy that. And, he knew his twin. This kind of an announcement wasn't Steiner's cup of tea.

He opened his eyes. He could hear footsteps approaching and he wasn't up to speaking with the woman from earlier. She was just another one of his 'stress-relievers', but she, apparently, took him seriously. He couldn't even remember her name properly. Was it Ara? Ada? Ana? He always only called her 'A'.

The figure walked toward him, albeit cautiously. "Hey," Skye called out.

"Are you", the figure started, the voice obviously female, "the one who started something in the inn?"

Skye looked at the woman. Her hair was scattered over her shoulders, her sleeves messily folded up to her elbows. He lowered his knit cap, tucking more of his hair in it. "So, what if I am?"

* * *

Claire packed one of her bags. She was nearly done packing the not-so-useful items that she had accumulated the past few months along with those she already owned. It had already been a week since she had called her grandfather but everything she heard was still a big shock to her. Questions filled her head. Was she really married to Nathaniel? Did her grandfather really sell her out? Is that why he was really intent on having her marry him?

She gripped at her hair, her tears streaming down her cheeks. She wiped them away with her palms. She zipped her bag close and looked at her house. She took a deep breath and closed her eyes. So many things were happening too fast.

Ciel was sitting by the door, watching Claire pace back and forth. He wagged his tail as she turned to face him and speak his name.

"I'm just going to the inn, I'll see you later." She patted his head and exited the door. The sun's light was beginning to fade from the sky, the moon becoming more and more visible. She walked toward the inn. She noticed the one lamp flickering on. Usually, it would have already been lit by now. She entered the inn and walked over to the counter. She sat on the stool near the telephone and ordered a glass of wine.

A man entered the inn with a woman clinging to his arm. They sat on one of the tables on the far-end of the inn, opposite where Claire was seated, sipping wine.

She looked at her wineglass and whirled the wine inside. She stared at the glass. It looked brand new.

The minutes passed by quickly while Claire alternated between contemplating the contents of her glass and actually drinking it. She asked for another refill and looked at the clock. It was already 8:30, nearly two and a half hours since she entered. She looked at the empty plate in front of her, thinking how she found what she ate delicious.

Duke slammed the door open, startling Claire and causing her to look at the scene unfolding. Manna was right behind him, gripping his arm. "Aja!" Duke shouted.

The woman holding onto the man's arm looked at Duke quickly, then back at the man. She whispered something into the man's ear and smiled. The man looked at Duke and regarded him for a second. He looked back at the woman and nodded to her. She looked at Duke and pointed to the man. "This," she said, "is my fiancé."

The man's, Duke's and Manna's eyes widened in shock. The man faced the woman, his eyebrows furrowed. She looked back at him and smiled.

"Aja, you can't be serious!" said Manna, her hands loosening their grip on Duke's arm.

"No," Aja shook her head. "I am very serious." She wrapped her arms around the man and looked at her father.

Duke looked at the man. "And who are _you_?"

The man shrugged Aja's arms away and stood up. He wore his coat and faced Duke. "You don't need to know who I am, sir." He looked at Aja, his eyes full of anger. Aja shrank in her seat. "I cut my ties with this woman. Our relationship does not exi—"

Duke punched the man in the face, causing the latter to fall on his back. Aja stood and ran to Duke, shouting at him. A few of the men present in the inn grabbed Duke. His face was red.

The man stood up and pushed his way from the crowd. He placed a knit cap over his head and walked out of the inn.

Claire watched the scene from her seat, Ann standing beside her. "This must be the first time you're seeing Aja, am I right?" said Ann. Claire nodded. She drank the remaining wine from her glass and stood up. She got money from her pocket and handed it to Ann. "Thanks a lot," said Claire, "but, I think I have to go now. Could you keep me updated?" She smiled at Ann and walked out of the inn.

From the distance, she saw the man turn in the path by Saibara's. She wondered if he was going to the dock and boarding the next boat. She wanted to follow him and ask him questions. First, he seemed quite rude and she hated men who disrespected women. Second, he looked familiar. Very familiar.

She walked straight into her farm and looked around. It was definitely cleaner than when she had first arrived. Back then, weeds were growing all around. Now, it was mostly full of crops and flowers. She looked at the wooden fence in front of the barn. She was going to miss getting them in and out of it. Her animals were going to be brought to Forget-Me-Not a day after she arrived.

She glanced at the river near her chicken coop, wondering if the land in Forget-Me-Not also had a river. She walked over to the small bridge and glanced at the forest farther down the path. She saw a figure walking near the trees and settle by the edge of the lake. "Is that Aja's fiancé?" she said to herself.

She walked over to the lake. A twig cracked under her foot.

"Hey," the man called out.

Claire looked at the man. He was looking at the lake, although from his angle, she knew he could see her from the corner of his eyes. His facial features were highlighted by the moonlight. His eyes shone brightly. His lips turned downward at the corner, blood clotting on the side that she could see. His cheeks were of a reddish-color.

"Are you", she saw his eyebrows raise at the sound of her voice. "The one who started something in the inn?"

He turned his face to look at her. He lowered his knit cap, tucking more of his hair. "So, what if I am?" His lips were a straight line, his eyes blank.

Claire stood still and shook her head. "It doesn't matter. I don't really know Aja, although I am friends with her parents."

"What," said the man, "you're here to tell me off?" He looked back into the lake.

Claire looked at him. Even though she was just seeing his back, she could tell that he wasn't exactly happy. She walked over to him. "Could I sit...near you?"

The man smirked as he faced her. "Why not beside me?"

"Are you flirting with me?" She moved toward the man and sat beside him. She could smell beer from his shirt. "You shouldn't be, what with you having a fiancée and all."

"She's not my fiancée. She's just a woman who asked me to meet her parents."

"Why do you think she would do that?" Claire brushed her hair to one side.

The man shrugged. "She's really nothing to me. She just paid extra in the host club I work at, so I felt obliged to accompany her here."

Claire looked at the man disapprovingly. He really didn't seem like he cared for Aja. "Do you enjoy doing that?"

"Doing what?" He looked at her. She could see that he was inspecting her face. She started feeling very conscious of how she looked. Their eyes locked. She could feel herself becoming paralyzed.

"D—I can't move."

"Don't worry about that. You'll be able to move again in a while. It happens. So, do I enjoy doing what?" He tilted his head away from her although his eyes were obviously still watching her.

"I—Do you enjoy fooling around with women so much?"

"Don't you want to know my name?" He looked back at her, his eyes had lost that brightness she saw earlier.

"By knowing your name, I would end up having some sort of connection with you." Her eyes looked at the water. "I'd rather not have that. You seem...troublesome."'

The man laughed. "You're right, you know. That's why lots of girls like me." He looked straight into her eyes. "But, I want to tell you. Just look up. Whatever it is you'd call what that is, that's who I am."

Claire would have smiled if she could. "So, you're Heaven? Star? Cloud?" she said, with a tinge of sarcasm.

The man smiled at her and shook his head. "Why did you follow me?"

Claire looked away from him, her face reddening. "I wasn't following you!"

"Then, why are you turning red?"

"I-I just happened to notice you walking here when I was by the bridge in my farm."

"Yeah, right. Then, tell me, why did you leave that place when I left?"

"I-I-I wasn't finished packing my things! I needed to go back immediately."

"Yes, but," he reached for her hair and pulled out a loose strand then started twirling a lock between his fingers. "Someone rushing wouldn't have taken long drinking a glass of wine."

Claire sighed. She guessed this man was good with words but she wondered if he had been paying attention to her to notice such a fact. "The happiness when she announced your relationship seemed too one-sided. I wanted to know your side."

"Well," the man dropped the lock of hair between his fingers. "Now, you know."

"You still haven't answered my question,"

"You are very persistent." He turned away from her. "I find that amusing."

"So?"

"It's not really something that I enjoy. It just helps me, I guess."

Claire could feel her mobility coming back. "How so?" She gave the man a quick glance. "I doubt we'll ever meet again, so you can tell me anything."

He smiled at her, turning to face her again. "It helps me forget about my first love."

Claire saw the sadness in his eyes. "Haven't you moved on?"

"It's difficult to move on when you still see her every now and then." He looked up at the sky. Claire looked up as well. It was darker now, and more stars appeared. "You see," the man paused and looked at her eyes. "She's my sister-in-law."

"You fell in love with your brother's wife?" She looked at his eyes which immediately locked into hers.

He shook his head. "More like my girlfriend fell in love with my brother."

Claire moved her legs, checking if she could rely on them to stand up. "I'm not trying to judge you, but, did you do anything that might have—"

The man shot her a warning look. "You don't know the story and you're thinking _I did something wrong_?"

Claire shook her head and reached out to the man. "It's in the way you treated Aja. Something about it gave me the sense that you don't respect the women who swoon at your feet."

He tilted his head to the side. "You're probably right. My brother said that I didn't seem serious about our relationship. In fact, I probably wasn't. I just hate the fact that she left me," he folded his arms across his chest. "For my uptight twin brother."

Claire bit her lip. "Were you...fooling around with other girls?"

The man nodded. "Even before, I was a playbo—" He was cut off by a slap to his cheek. Claire looked at him, her eyebrows knitted together. "How dare you!" she shouted at him. He was left stunned. Her slap taking him by surprise. He saw her eyes widen, her expression changing suddenly.

"I-I'm sorry!" She looked away from him as she apologized.

He spat out blood. She had hit the wound that Duke had given him, accidentally removing the blood clot. She handed him her handkerchief which he took quickly and put to the bleeding area. "Do you have anything against playboys?"

"I caught my boyfriend making out in bed with another woman."

The man looked at her, analyzing her face once again. He moved closer to her.

"And now," she continued. "He's forcing his way into my life. In fact, when my grandfather dies, I think I'm doomed." She stood up quickly, but because she had just regained the mobility in her legs, she stumbled forward, landing directly on top of the man. "I'm sorry." A tear rolled down her left cheek. "Sky—is _that _your name?"

Skye nodded. "Just remember," he pulled her closer to him, his heart beginning to beat fast against his chest. "My name is spelled with an 'e' at the end."

Claire allowed herself to be pulled forward, allowed her lips to brush against his. "Now, I have some connection with you." she whispered as she closed her eyes. Her heart had begun to beat faster as well as though it was trying to resonate with Skye's.

Skye pressed his lips against hers, closing his eyes. He moved his hands from her head, slid his hands down her neck and pressed her back down towards him. She felt her blood rush to her cheeks, giving them a burning sensation.

She blinked her eyes open and pushed herself up and out of Skye's grip. "I don't think we should be doing this," she said. "We hardly know each other." She stood up and moved away from Skye.

Skye sat up and dusted his shirt. "I'm sorry," he said. "I don't usually do that to women I meet, well, women who don't 'swoon at my feet' as you say it." He stared blankly at Claire who had begun to walk back to her farm. "May I at least," he shouted, "have your name?"

"It's Claire." She looked back at him quickly. "I'm Claire."


End file.
